A New Jersey lawyer who built a reputation representing alleged murderers urged jurors yesterday to reject murder charges against him — because the case was based on lies by the type of people he used to call clients.

“When people are confronted with spending extraordinary amounts of time in jail, they say and do anything to gain release,” Paul Bergrin said in a 90-minute opening statement in US District Court in Newark. “The only way for them to do that is to cooperate with the government.”

Bergrin is representing himself in a trial focused on the murder of Deshawn “Kemo” McCray, a government informant who had been set to testify against Bergrin’s client William Baskerville.

Bergrin is charged with one count each of murder and murder conspiracy for giving Baskerville’s pals McCray’s name before McCray was shot to death in 2004.

Assistant US Attorney John Gay said Bergrin was “house counsel” to a drug operation and felt that his world would fall apart if McCray got to testify.